The very best of Aotearoa kai has been celebrated at the New Zealand Food Awards.
An Auckland-based French duo, who run the company TOMeTTE, won the supreme award on Thursday night for their business, which cooks New Zealand ingredients in a French style.
The judges at the Massey University-led awards said TOMeTTE took traditional family recipes and found a way to turn them into packaged convenience meals without sacrificing any of the quality.
Among the other winners was the Blue River Dairy company, which won the Healthier Choice Award for its sheep milk powder, a substitute for those allergic to cow's milk.
Dairy company The Collective took out the Export Award. General manager Angus Allan described the company's product as a gourmet yoghurt of the 21st century, that is different to anything else on the market.
He says the company started making yoghurt in New Zealand in 2010 as it felt there was a gap in the market.
It became number one in the market in its first ten months, then expanded overseas after discovering a gap in the British market as well.
The company will be launching into France and northern Europe sometime in the next six months, says Mr Allan.